Bedstead.



No. 770,750. PATENTBD SEPT. 27, 1904.

' 0.' P. H0N0L0.

BBDSTEAD. APPLICATION FILED MAY 7, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

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UNTTnD STATES Patented September 27, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

BEDSTEAD.

SPECIFICATION forming' part of Letters Patent No. 770,750, dated September 27, 1904.

Application filed May '7, 1904. Serial No. 206,802. (No model.)

Be it known that I, GoTTLoB F. HoNoLD, residing' in Sheboygan, in the county of Sheboygan and State of Wisconsin, have invented new and useful Improvements in Bedsteads, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements that are especially adapted to be employed in bedsteads constructed of metal, and particularly in those bedsteads in which the posts are of tubular construction and the rails are of bars or angle-irons and of comparatively small size.

The object of the invention is to provide simple and inexpensive means adapted for securing the side rails of the bedstead to the posts readily, detachably, and so as to be firm, strong, and reliable, and particularly so that the head and foot posts and frames cannot tilt inwardly or outwardly in the direction of the length of the side rails.

The invention consists of the construction, its parts and combinations of parts, as herein described and claimed, or the equivalents thereof.

1n the drawings, Figure 1 shows a fragment of a tubular post and a fragment of a side rail with my improved means for securing and bracing the raildetachably to the post. Fig. 2 shows a` fragment of the post with a head and bracket secured thereto adapted to receive and hold the side rail therein. Fig. 3 is a top plan view of the improved means for securing a side rail to the post or head or foot frame, the post and a part of the improved means being shown in section on line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a side view of so much of the rail and post coupling device as is attached to the side rail, the view being of the opposite side of that shown in Fig. 1; and Fig. 5 is a detail illustrating the bearing of an arm on a post.

In the drawings, 1 represents a tubular bedpost of the general character of posts now in common use. A cross-rail 2, which may be or' angle-iron or any suitable material and in any desired form, is provided at itsend with a head 3, which may be of malleable iron cast,

`the shoulder 13 on the head 9.

and thereby permanently secured on the end of the cross-rail, which head is bored vertically to receive the post 1 through it, and which head may be fitted tight to the tubular post in any suitable manner. A corresponding head at the other end of the crossrail 2, fitted onto a post, so that the posts and the rail are permanently attached to each other, would make up a head or foot frame of the bedstead. Other cross-rails may also be used for securing' the posts at the head or at the foot of the bedstead to each other, such permanent connection of the two head-posts and the two foot-posts to each other forming no part of my invention.

The head 3, so far as my invention is concerned, is a metal collar fitted on and about the post and having a part projecting therefrom in the form of a bracket L in the direction of the application or extension of the side rail. This bracket 4 has alaterally-projecting shoulder 5, preferably substantially as wide vertically as the bracket, and has a rear face 6, inclined rearwardly downwardly, and just outside of this inclined face 6 it has a guard 7 along the entire length of the downwardly-extending face, projecting a little to the rear thereofl and having about the same inclination downwardly as the face. The side rail 8, advisably made of metal, is provided atits ends with a head 9, secured permanently thereto by any suitable means, and this head is provided with a terminal hook member 10, which extends from the head in the direction of the length of the rail and, projecting laterally therefrom, terminates in a lip 11, extending forwardly entirely across the hook from top to bottom, the projection forwardly being toward the head 9, which lip is beveled or inclined on its forward edge 12 from each top and bottom edge of thev hook member forwardly to the center, where it is nearest to A groove or recess is cut in the overturned laterally-projecting portion of the hook behind the lip 11 to receive therein the guard 7 on the shoulder 5 of the bracket 4: when the two are in engagement.

It will be noted that the space or channel vertically between the front edge or face 12 IOO of the hook 10 and the shoulder 13 in front thereof on the head 9 is of such size and tapering form as just to receive therein the upper portion of the shoulder 5 on the cross-rail head-bracket 4, the shoulder 5 below its medial line horizontally being wider laterally than the channel or space between the hook 10 and the adjacent shoulder 13 at its least width, so that when in the act of coupling the rail to the post the hook 10 is let down from above onto the bracket 5in such manner that the face 12 on the hook contacts with face 6 on the bracket, the hook on the rail engages the bracket wedgingly and bindingly, and so that the rail is substantially in a horizontal line with the bracket, and in this position the rail is locked to the post. Also it will be noted that by reason of the tapering or wedge form of the front of-the hook 10 reversely both up and down the rail can be applied to the posts either edge up and will be equally well held in position locked thereto releasably. For strengthening this releasable coupling of the rail to the post and providing against any possible tilting of the post forward or rearwardlyin the direction of the length of the rail I preferably provide bracing-arms 14, secured permanently to the rail-head 9 and advisably made integral therewith, which arms project upwardly and downwardly, respectively, from the rail-head for a distance and then turn in the direction .of the length of the rail rearwardly and to such extent as to adapt them to bear, respectively, above and below the cross-rail head 3 against the post 1 when the rail is coupled to the post by locking the rail to the bracket 4. When cylindrical tubular posts 1 are employed, as is common in bedsteads, the ends of the arms 14 that bear against the posts should be made slightly concave, so as to it to the posts properly and firmly. The detachable and reversible character of the coupling, by means of which the rail is coupled up to the posts at its respective ends, is such that the rail can be applied thereto either side up, as desired, and the arms 14 are not necessary parts of the rail-coupling proper and may be omitted therefrom; but I advise their use as being adapted to make a stronger and better bedstead construction. In fact, the arms 14, being fitted to the posts, as described, and held thereto by rail and post locking devices, the relations of the side rails to the posts are very firm and hold the posts not only against tilting in the direction of the length of the rails, but also against tilting laterally under strain of moving the bedstead laterally, and, in fact, with such firmness that the guard 7 might be omitted and still have a reliable and firm but detachable post and rail connection.

What I claim as my invention is In a bedstead, a reversible post and rail coupling, comprising a post-coupling member consisting of a head having a bracket with a shoulder having a face inclined rearwardly downwardly and a guard alongside the face on the outside thereof, and a rail-coupling member consisting of a head on the rail having a terminal hook, the hook projecting laterally and having a lip inclined reversely from its medial line horizontally upwardly and downwardly rearwardly the edge of the lip being adapted on either side of its medial line to lit interchangeably on the inclined face of said post-coupling member, the lip of the hook being provided with a channel behind the bearing edge of the lip to receive the guard on the post-coupling member therein,- and a shoulder .on the rail-coupling member in front of the reversely-inclined lip and at a distance therefrom less than the greatest width of the shoulder on the post-coupling member.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GO'ITLOB F. HONOLD. Witnesses:

THAI). L. FULLER, S. C. WYATT. 

